Unparalleled Beauty

Chapter C133 pt2

She stood up, feeling something surge within her.

Wushuang didn't think much of it, assuming her menses had arrived. Suddenly, she saw Linglong looking at the ground with a terrified expression. Following her gaze, she saw a great deal of blood on her skirt.

She froze for a moment, her chest churning.

But this time, she couldn't suppress the churning. She instinctively vomited something, and saw Linglong's mouth open as if she were saying something, but she couldn't hear any sound.

***

The moonlight was as cool as water.

Chen Yunshang, draped in a cloak and accompanied by a maid holding a lantern, stood quietly.

Until she saw a tall, slender figure appear in the distance.

She hurried over.

"My Lord!"

Zhao Jianzhi was in the midst of complex emotions when he saw her walking towards him with an anxious expression.

It was so late and the weather so cold; he hadn't expected her to still be waiting for him.

"Husband, did you speak with her?"

Actually, given Chen Yunshang's status, she shouldn't call Zhao Jianzhi "husband." How could a concubine address her master as such? But she had always called him that, and Zhao Jianzhi had grown accustomed to it.

He nodded slightly.

Chen Yunshang revealed a smile, seeming to finally breathe a sigh of relief.

Zhao Jianzhi hadn't seen such a pure smile from her in a long time.

Actually, this was for the best! Zhao Jianzhi thought silently, each returning to their proper place, and from now on, remaining separate.

Only, a faint ache lingered in his heart, an ache that left him feeling somewhat lost.

"Husband, let's go back quickly; the night air is cold..."

At that moment, the residence not far behind them suddenly blazed with light, and a faint clamor could be heard.

The small door had not yet been closed, and the piercing light shone from that opening, revealing a sense of foreboding.

"What happened?" Chen Yunshang asked in a panic.

In the dead of night, the Duke Zhao's mansion and Lady Fengtian's residence were completely surrounded by Imperial Guards in distinct armor.

Both residences were brightly lit, the lights burning all night long.

In truth, such a commotion here, even in the late hours, attracted the attention of several nearby residences, but with the situation unclear, no one dared to come out and investigate.

After daybreak, the news that Lady Fengtian had suddenly died in her residence finally spread.

Initially, those who knew were the officials who went to the morning court, only to be faced with a palace filled with a solemn and murderous aura. Even the Chamberlain who relayed the message that the court session was canceled wore a grave expression.

Only then did some people learn the inside story, and then the matter spread wider and wider, until it was known throughout the court and the country.

Those who learned of this all wrung their wrists and sighed with regret.

How could they not feel regret?

Lady Fengtian had enjoyed exclusive favor for more than a year, and there was no sign of her waning favor. Everyone knew that she would definitely enter the palace to become an imperial consort, and then another favored consort would emerge.

Although the men of the Ji family were emperors, they were also sentimental souls.

Emperor Xuanzong, the late Emperor, and now it was this one's turn.

It wasn't that no one protested. The harem involved the imperial court, and the concubines in the harem were mostly daughters of high-ranking officials from the previous dynasty, but protesting was useless. Since his ascension to the throne, this one had been accustomed to acting arbitrarily, who would dare to speak out?

Occasionally, an Imperial Censor would say a few words, but it was all minor trouble. The Imperial Censor did not dare to make trouble with the Emperor, unless you didn't plan to be an official or value your life.

Of course, there were also people who were overjoyed, mostly families with daughters serving as concubines in the palace, but they dared not show even a hint of joy in public. This was because one family, because their daughter was a concubine in the palace, could not hide their joy after learning of Lady Fengtian's sudden death, and spoke wildly and laughed loudly while drinking outside.

While they were still at the table, they were arrested by the men of the Five Cities Military Commission.

This was not the end of it.

Originally, it was thought that it was a junior in the family who was not cautious enough in his actions, and His Majesty would at most reprimand him. However, that night, the family was raided, the daughter was deposed, and sent directly out of the palace, and the whole family was thrown into prison.

The men of the Five Cities Military Commission all took to the streets, and anyone who showed a happy expression was taken away for questioning.

Seeing this scene, no one on the street dared to laugh anymore. The passing pedestrians were all hurrying along. Though winter had not yet arrived, the entire capital was filled with an atmosphere of unease and panic.

At the same time, Emperor Qianwu had already missed court for five consecutive days.

The submitted memorials remained unanswered for many days. It was only after the Grand Secretariat officials went to inquire that the memorials gradually returned to the Grand Secretariat, but the imperial endorsements were written by Fusheng on His Majesty's behalf.

News of palace concubines being deposed was constantly spreading from the palace. The Zhao family was raided, and the entire family was imprisoned. The Chang family was raided, and the entire family was imprisoned. Even the Empress's maternal family was raided, and the entire family was imprisoned.

After this news spread, people were terrified and felt that His Majesty had gone mad, wondering who would be next.

At this time, the Court of Judicial Review was almost full. Besides the palace servants of Fengqi Palace, even the palace servants of Mingyi Hall were not spared and were all taken away for interrogation.

If even the slightest clue was discovered, the palace servants of an entire palace would be taken away and sent to the Court of Judicial Review.

The Empress and Consort Hui knelt outside Chenhui Hall for two days, crying as if their lives depended on it. Because they could not see anyone, and no one came to interrogate them, they could only kneel there and defend themselves, but no one listened or paid attention.

Compared to the atmosphere of unease and panic outside the palace, the palace was a bottomless abyss. No one knew who would be next. Some palace concubines could not bear this kind of panic and secretly hanged themselves, only to be suspected of committing suicide out of fear of punishment, and all the palace servants around them were taken into the Court of Judicial Review.

After this incident, the palace servants of each palace had an additional task, which was to watch over their own mistress.

If the mistresses died, they would be done with it, but not everyone could be buried with them.

Although Emperor Qianwu had not shown his face since the matter occurred, everyone knew that this matter would not end. Those who had originally held onto a glimmer of hope dared not do so anymore and began wave after wave of palace servants exposing their own masters.

In the past, any palace concubine who had ever cursed Lady Fengtian or expressed jealousy towards her was reported and exposed by the palace servants around her.

If the mistress was sent to the Court of Judicial Review, the servants would be safe and might even save their lives.

In just a few days, the various palaces and halls were emptied. Only Fengqi Palace and Mingyi Hall still had their mistresses, but not a single servant remained.

"We can't let this continue. Let's go and advise him," Fusheng said in a deep voice.

As soon as Fusheng heard these words, he shrank his neck and waved his hands repeatedly.

"You go if you want to!"

Before the words had even finished, Fusheng said again, "You shouldn't go either, really don't go. His Majesty, he... he has already gone mad..."

When he said the last sentence, Fusheng's face showed a look of grief, and his eyes also turned red.

"His Majesty is mad, but shouldn't the Master be sane? Shouldn't the Master do something about it?"

Fusheng swallowed hard, but how could he say that this one was not much better than the other? After the news arrived that day, His Majesty rushed to Madam's mansion and almost started a massacre on the spot. If he hadn't clung to the Master's leg and said that the cause of Madam's death had not yet been investigated, probably not a single person would have remained intact.

"He really needs to be persuaded, or the court will fall into chaos."

At that moment, the sound of hurried footsteps approached.

Fusheng was feeling irritable. Before he even saw who it was, he already wanted to curse.

"Master, I've found it."

It was Little Douzi.

He ran breathlessly, his face filled with joy.

"Found what? You still dare to smile?! Quickly, cry for this old man!"

Fusheng lashed out with his sleeve. Little Douzi quickly changed to a crying face, but his voice still carried joy: "Master, someone confessed. The person who harmed Madam confessed."

Wushuang died from poison, and poison mostly enters through the mouth.

Since it entered through the mouth, it was simple. Everything she ate and drank that day, and everyone who handled it, was arrested and interrogated. Moreover, it was made clear that they would not die until they confessed, and if one died, the person who administered the torture would pay with their life.

Thus, a nightmarish existence began for those who were implicated.

Seven people were implicated around Wushuang. Except for Linglong, all were subjected to torture.

Those in charge of the interrogation were all experienced. After several days of interrogation, they knew who was the most suspicious. Thus, a palace maid named Kou'er was revealed.

After two consecutive days of torture, even threatening her family and ancestors for eight generations, this woman finally confessed.

This confession revealed a shocking secret.

That night, several new people came to the Department of Justice, and the 'old ones' could finally rest for a night.

In Rouyi Hall, the former sleeping quarters had become a land of ice.

The former dragon bed had now become an ice bed made of ice bricks, upon which lay a beautiful woman sleeping with her eyes closed.

She was adorned in splendid attire, her hair full of jewels, lifelike, as if she were still alive. Only Ji Yang knew that she would never open her eyes again.

At this moment, Ji Yang was dressed in a black robe, his hair disheveled. His once ink-black hair was now half gray.

Linglong had always thought that turning white overnight was an exaggeration of the ancients, but she had watched His Majesty's hair turn gray day by day with her own eyes.

"I will avenge you."

He released the woman's hand, and as he turned, his eyes were filled with bloodlust, appearing as if he had gone mad.

"Serve her well."

Crouching in the corner, Linglong responded in a low voice, "Yes."

***

The dark prison was now brightly lit by countless torches.

An old woman had her limbs bound and tied to a rack.

Directly opposite her, there were two more racks, with two men being tortured upon them.

Miserable screams, pleas for mercy… echoed throughout the prison, making one's blood run cold, wishing one could be deaf. But even if one were deaf, there were still eyes; and even if the eyes were blind, there was still a nose.

The thick stench of blood and the burnt smell of scorched flesh were enough to make even seasoned executioners nauseous.

"You think you have no ties, that you are truly unburdened? When you were harming others, didn't you think that you weren't born from a stone either? Rest assured, We will not let you die. We will make you watch the Hu family members being sliced to pieces in front of you, one by one."

"They will wail and curse day and night, lamenting how the Hu family could have given birth to such a vile woman who brings harm, causing the Hu family to have no descendants, extinguishing their ancestral incense, leaving them childless and without a good death. Before they die, they will curse you day and night, and even after they die, they will continue to haunt you..."

"You will not have a good death, you will not have a good death..."

The old woman's face was covered in blood, her eyes were wide with fury, but she could not move at all.

She couldn't even bite her tongue, because her jaw had been dislocated. She couldn't even avoid looking, because her eyelids had been cut off.

A man in black robes, wearing a golden crown, chuckled: "This is just the beginning. Prince An has no descendants, but he has bones. We have already ordered people to dig up his grave and whip his corpse. Prince Jin will not be spared either. We will make them die and then have their bones crushed into ashes."

"Oh, right, We remember that when the rebellious prince was executed, We, mindful of the innocence of children, spared Prince Jin's descendants, only exiling them to Lingnan. We have already ordered people to find them. In a few days, they will arrive before you, so you will know what it means to be without descendants and to not have a good death."

"You will not have a good death, you will not have a good death..." the old woman mumbled.

The gray-haired man turned and walked out of the prison cell.

He was already destined to die a terrible death.